Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Unfortunately, I cannot confirm or deny anything about July at this stage, but it is certainly our hope and intention to allow indoor dining to resume, we hope in early July, and some mass events as well. As always, there are four factors. It is not just the vaccines but also case numbers, which seem to be rising a bit again, the situation in hospitals, which is continuing to improve, and then issues concerning variants. We do have a concern about the Indian variant. There is some evidence in the UK of increased transmission and increased hospitalisations as a result of that. We will see how that develops in the coming weeks.

I believe it is Fáilte Ireland that draws up the guidelines on outdoor dining and drinking. It will not be done by us, but we will have an input. I do not have a date for them, unfortunately, but I appreciate that people need to see them soon in order that they can plan ahead. To give the Senator a rough idea, it is going to be seated dining only with 1 m or 1.5 m between tables and no more than six at a table. The six people can come from any number of households. There will be no rule about a maximum of 15. If an establishment has the space, then it has the space. There will not be a requirement to buy a substantial meal. That will be gone. We do not anticipate that there will be a limit on the amount of time people can stay. It will be a lot more practical than what existed before, but that is not finalised yet.